Bayern boss on the January transfer window: "There will be a lot to do"
"There will be a lot to do," says Bayern Munich sporting director Christoph Freund of the upcoming transfer window.
Bayern Munich sporting director Christoph Freund is expecting a busy January transfer window.
With the Bavarians already lacking depth at the back, Min-jae Kim and Noussair Mazraoui are set to depart for the Asian Cup and Africa Cup of Nations respectively in January, adding to the pressure on Freund and his team to bring in defensive reinforcements.
"The time after Christmas will certainly not be boring. There will be a lot to do," Freund told Sport1 on Sunday.
"It's a special situation. We don't have that many defenders. In the winter, it's generally not easy to make big transfers that will help the club in the long term. That's why we have to find clever solutions in the coming months. It's a big challenge," said Freund.
According to Freund, Bayern is also facing a difficult challenge in the long term when it comes to the transfer market.
"Basically, it's important that we remain as successful as possible. That is the big goal. Internationally, it's not going to get any easier. We have to think carefully about how we can keep up," said Freund, expressing concern about the club's deep-pocketed rivals in England.
"We need to find a good mix of real stars to give structure and leadership to the team, while at the same time getting more out of the youth work," Freund said, adding:
"I think there has to be a mix. We need the right players with the right mentality. We have to build a team out of that. Bayern Munich can't afford to have the 20 best individual players in the future, and that's not our approach. But we want to build one of the best teams.